There are already existing computerized methods and means for automatic high-speed photosetting of texts which have to be printed.
In these devices or methods, the data are supplied to the computer in the form of a pre-established text which is automatically recomposed as letters are sequentially projected upon a photosensitive support, using a combination of horizontal scanning and vertical scrolling, following the sequential order given by the text which is to be reproduced.
According to the various types of known devices, and owing to the trend towards increasingly faster operation, the means being used are either electromechanical (rotating drums or disks, movable photosensitive surfaces) or more or less electronic, using cathode ray tubes (CRT) or laser beams, while the motions always consist of a horizontal sweep by a light beam and a vertical scrolling of the photosensitive surfaces.
These devices provide no possibility of forming a composite image, starting from figurative elements which must initially be arranged into highly diversified spatial configurations, on the basis of specific data. This will be the case, for instance, when it is desired to obtain an image of the sky map, including a lay-out of constellations and planets, together with figurative symbols, starting from localisation data (longitude and latitude) and time data (day and hour). The purpose of this invention is to provide means for achieving a result of this kind.